Inside Out (2015)

Inside Out

Written by Pete Docter, Meg LaFauve, & Josh Cooley

Directed by Pete Docter

Accompanying Short: Lava

Written & Directed by James Ford Murphy

When Inside Out opened, I remember hearing some jokes about it and about Pixar’s previous films: What if toys had feelings? What if cars had feelings? Now, what if FEELINGS had feelings?! It’s silly, but it is somewhat true here, as Pixar looks deep inside at the very things that make us who we are, and does so in an inventive way that also doesn’t quite make sense.

The main character in Lava

Before I talk about Inside Out, let’s talk about its short, Lava. I really want to dislike this short, but I’ll admit that’s because I got burnt out on the song when my husband played it non-stop for something like two weeks (which I suppose is karma for all the times I do it to him). However, watching it again reminded me that the short is really cute, and, yes, the song is really catchy. The visuals are strikingly gorgeous, with the main characters beautifully designed and animated. It’s not a short I need to see often, but it’s fun and somewhat emotional.

Disgust, Anger, Joy, Sadness, and Fear

If we’re talking about emotions, though, let’s dive into Inside Out. As the joke at the beginning of this review implies, Inside Out deals with the emotions that drive our thoughts and actions. It posits that the brain (and therefore, us) are controlled by five primary emotions: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. These five emotions are explored via Riley, an 11-year old girl who has just moved with her parents half-way across the country to a new city. At the same time, Joy and Sadness are accidentally jettisoned from “Headquarters” deep into the inner reaches of the brain, and must make it back before Anger, Fear, and Disgust inadvertently ruin Riley’s life.

Got all that?

Bing Bong with Sadness and Joy

The best things about this film are the animation and the depictions of various mental functions and phenomena. The central emotions are animated as glowing bundles of energy, so there isn’t really a traditional “edge” to them, like a normal character (animated or otherwise) would have; it’s a unique detail that is insanely clever. It’s a little strange that the concept isn’t carried over to the other inhabitants of the brain, such as the Forgetters (who clear out old unused memories) or Bing Bong, Riley’s imaginary friend. Bing Bong gets a bit of a reprieve, because he describes himself as being made out of cotton candy, but shouldn’t the other brain functions be animated like the Emotions are? I could understand the argument of Emotions being different than brain functions, but aren’t they ALL brain functions? Anyway, the Emotions have fantastic animation that isn’t as consistent as it perhaps should be.

Long-Term Memory

What is really great about the film is the depiction of our brain functions. Long-term memory is designed like the best library I’d ever want (albeit, with memory orbs instead of books BUT STILL), but what is EXCELLENT about the design is that the various memory shelves stylistically look like the fold and wrinkles of a brain. Old and forgotten memories get thrown into a seemingly bottomless pit, and there are different areas for things we experience (for example, dreams are made on a “film” studio, with special actors and plots written based on Riley’s actual life). One of the best of these was Abstract Thought, where reality breaks down in a series of stages. Above all, it is the importance of Core Memories that drive the plot and make the statement that these memories form the core of who we are. It’s a fantastically brilliant concept, and I found myself wanting to see more brain functions displayed and explained via the universe of the film.

If Joy is joy…then how is she sad?

Weirdly, it is the joke I’ve mentioned, about feelings having feelings, that gives me the biggest pause about the film. Take Joy: she is meant to be the embodiment of joy. That’s, like, her sole purpose of being. So, how then is she able to experience sadness? If Riley is controlled by the five Emotions, and thereby able to experience them, then what emotions are driving the Emotions? By the film’s logic, if Joy can experience sadness, then she should have a series of Emotions inside her. If she doesn’t, then how can she feel any emotion that isn’t joy? I understand why the film doesn’t touch on this, because the logical thought becomes some bizarre version of a matryoshka doll…where does it stop?

Overall, Inside Out presents a very interesting concept, and generally portrays that concept rather well. I take issue with feelings having feelings, because there is something just…strange about it, but I also fully admit that I can’t see around the storytelling without it: How does one tell a story when five of your characters are only allowed to feel and express a single emotion? I give the film high marks for a brilliant interpretation of its premise, even if it’s a little shaky at times.

SHORT GRADE: A-

FILM GRADE: A